Call Kurtis: American Airlines Refuses Compensation for Family Denied Boarding
LODI (CBS13) — On the way home and waiting to board from the Cancun Airport the Nguyen's say American Airlines only let 4 of his 11 family members board the plane.
"What do you mean you can't find our reservation?" Father Thuc Nguyen recalls saying to the American Airline ticketing agents who he said wasted valuable time and never found the family's reservation until the last minute.
Moreover, by the time American Airlines found the reservations for the remaining seven, it was too late to board, forcing the seven to spend an extra night in Mexico.
"I was so mad," said Thuc. He got a copy of the airline's record, which claimed even if they did make it to Phoenix their connecting flight home to California was "overbooked."
"They used those words specifically, 'it is overbooked,' he said.
The family thinks they were involuntarily bumped by the airline and are owed compensation, "I don't think it's too much to ask," said Thuc.
Under federal law, if you are bumped involuntarily from a domestic flight you have a right to cash; 400-percent of your one way fare up to $1300 if the airlines cannot get you to your destination within two hours. The Nguyen's big problem, this was not a domestic flight, it was an incoming flight from Mexico.
"It's a grey area," said CBS Travel Editor Peter Greenberg, who thinks if this was a roundtrip that originated from the U.S., the Nguyen family deserves compensation.
"If I were in this situation, I would say give me denied boarding compensation and at least a mariachi band to welcome me home," said Greenberg.
When we reached out to American Airlines, a spokesperson blamed the problem on an isolated ticketing issue, insisting the family was not involuntarily bumped and did pay for the family's hotel and meals for that extra night in Mexico.
Additionally the airline added, "We sincerely apologize...and offered each of the seven family members a $200 voucher for future travel."
Greenberg does not think the vouchers are appropriate compensation for the Nguyen family saying, "Sorry about the roach in your coffee here's a coupon."
And neither does the Nguyen family.
"Where can you fly for $200?" Thuc said. "I don't even want to give the impression that that was acceptable."
Not happy with the way Cancun 2015 vacation ended, the family is not sure American will be their airline of choice for their next family getaway.
The airline hints this was an issue tied to its merger with U.S. Airways, saying the reservation systems from both carries have now merged which should keep something like this from happening again.
Travel experts say the easiest way to avoid this kind of stress, confirm your reservation the night before you take off.
AMERICAN AIRLINES FULL STATEMENT
We regret that their travel did not go as smoothly as it should have, and we sincerely apologize for the inconvenience it caused during their return trip.
American Airlines customer relations will be reaching out to the passengers directly regarding a voucher for future travel. The cause was an isolated ticketing issue associated with their reservation. The issue was corrected, but due to the delay, they were reaccommodated on a flight the next day. American did reimburse the family for meals and hotel accommodations that extra evening in Cancun.
The isolated ticketing issue was the result of a schedule change, and that the passengers had segments that were booked as US Airways and as American Airlines (operating as US Airways). The correction was made at the ticket counter to rectify the issue. On Oct. 17, 2015, we will shift to one reservation system and transition all US Airways flights to American flights. At that time, we will be one airline with one website, app and one set of travel policies and benefits. This cutover will eliminate the odds of this happening in the future as we will be on one reservation system.
Re. denied boarding…per U.S. law, this only applies to flight within or from the United States:
If a flight is oversold (more passengers hold confirmed reservations than there are seats available), no one may be denied boarding against his or her will until airline personnel first ask for volunteers who will give up their reservation willingly, in exchange for compensation of the airline's choosing. If there are not enough volunteers, other passengers may be denied boarding involuntarily in accordance with the following boarding priority of American. This process occurs at the gate, and only would apply to those who hold a confirmed reservation.
Again, we apologize for the inconvenience that occurred with their reservation.
